At that very first meeting, Laurie proposed and Lesley accepted.
And last Saturday night, the well-known Corowa couple, celebrated 60 years of marriage at Corowa Golf Club.
They were married at St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church Corowa on a beautiful, sunny but freezing, frosty June morning, with the reception at the RSL Hall, catered by the RSL Women’s Auxiliary.
Laurie served nine years in the navy, five years in the naval reserves and was a Vietnam veteran serving on HMAS Perth when it was hit off the Vietnam coast.
He also served on HMAS Sydney,and Lesley also served two years.
“It was a great life; we have life-long mates we are still in touch with, Facebook makes it an easy way for so many of us to regain contacts,” Lesley said.
Laurie joined the Corowa RSL Sub-Branch in 1969, is a past secretary and a long-time member. Lesley joined in 1983.
“Back then, in those days, the discrimination was still there even though women had served,” she said.
Since then, Lesley has served on the committee as welfare hospital visits and became the first woman president in 2003.
Twenty years later she was again elected president and still holds the position.
Laurie and Lesley have been very keen golfers with Laurie holding a record six holes-in-one at Corowa Golf Club and both winning championship and mixed events over 50 years.
Lesley served three terms as president and was on the ladies committee for more than 30 years.
Along the way the happy couple had three children, eight grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
Now suffering with emphysema and loss of sight, Laurie can’t increase his holes-in-one record. Lesley continues doing what she loves with bowls on the agenda.
When asked if there was a recipe for six decades of marriage, Lesley responded: “No recipe, trial and error, good and bad, don’t give up, work through the problems, remember all the good times and keep laughing.”
The formula works for the Rineharts.
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